It was when Aiden was only looking at her fingertips.
Suddenly, Erin pushed Aiden’s chest. Although the hand that pushed him had almost no strength, Aiden obediently fell back as guided by Erin’s touch.
As Aiden lay on the bed, Erin lightly sat on his knees. In that moment, as Erin looked at Aiden, a sense of intimacy filled the air.
In an instant, Aiden’s gaze shifted, looking up at Erin.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve been looked at like this.”
Ever since Aiden grew much taller than Erin, she had always looked up to him. So, looking down at him now was quite refreshing.
Through the lush lashes, Aiden’s eyes were faintly visible, giving Erin a serene and innocent feeling, so different from what she was used to seeing.
“This feels so new.”
Moreover, Aiden’s flushed face was even more noticeable. Erin carefully observed each aspect of his appearance. Aiden’s face seemed distinctly different. It was at that moment.
Aiden’s eyes softened as he met Erin’s gaze.
“…!”
Just the act of Aiden lifting his gaze and smiling was so provocative. It sparked impure thoughts. In that moment, her gaze fell on Aiden’s shirt.
What’s so special about this? She had seen much more revealing sights, but strangely, this seemed to captivate her attention. Her eyes kept wandering.
Her mouth felt dry, and it seemed like her eyes were getting warm underneath. Before she knew it, Erin instinctively reached out her hand, and Aiden took it in his own.
Then, he wrapped his other hand around her waist. As Erin looked at their joined hands and then at Aiden, “Huh…?” A flush spread across Aiden’s face.
The way he looked at Erin with narrowed eyes seemed tense. His face even seemed to redden from under the eyes.
Erin’s eyes softened as she looked at that sight.
“Is he feeling shy?”
If she had remembered Aiden’s usual demeanor, it would have been absurd, but for Erin, it was a perplexing sight.
She had seen young Aiden blush several times in the past. However, she momentarily forgot that he was no longer that young Aiden. She smiled momentarily as old thoughts crossed her mind.
“Aiden.”
Erin deliberately called out to him in a whisper, and she felt Aiden shiver in response. A slight chuckle escaped her.
Excited, Erin leaned in abruptly toward Aiden’s face.
Their lips met.
Their lips entangled as if they were trying to pull each other in, refusing to part. Even though they couldn’t get any closer, they turned their heads to touch each other more.
The remaining hint of rationality vanished in an instant. Their body temperatures were excessively hot where they touched.
However, not only was it not uncomfortable, but they didn’t want to let go.
They wanted to keep touching. Erin finally released her lips, exhaling an unsteady breath.
When she looked at Aiden, Erin’s eyes widened slightly. Aiden’s gaze as he looked at her was different now.
Aiden’s blushing face appeared different to her now. It wasn’t because he was embarrassed, but because he was anticipating it.
With his gaze fixed on Erin, the corner of Aiden’s mouth slowly lifted.
At that moment, Aiden pulled Erin closer. His hand wrapped around her waist, bringing her upper body closer.
Aiden still leaned against the edge of the bed, looking at Erin, but the control had shifted to him.
“I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed now,” Aiden’s eyebrows furrowed in a troubled manner. Aiden knew what Erin was thinking from the moment she kissed him.
He pretended not to know only because he enjoyed her taking the lead.
Erin was slightly perplexed.
“It was definitely heading in the direction I had in mind at first.”
This was a different direction from Erin’s plan. In fact, Erin had thought about how she would spend time with Aiden after clearing up the misunderstanding.
So, she had approached him proactively, but at some point, Aiden had started adapting to her.
“Should I endure a little more?” Aiden softly asked, squinting his eyes.
Erin stared blankly at him for a moment, but even though she was momentarily taken aback, she didn’t back down.
Meeting Aiden’s eyes directly, she spoke up.
“Don’t endure it. Instead, I won’t give in either,” Erin said with a confident smile.
Their determined gazes locked onto each other.
“What exactly are you trying to achieve?” Aiden’s voice was low, sounding both agitated and dangerously thrilling.
“Can you handle it?” Aiden asked, sounding genuinely concerned, yet at the same time, there was a sense of anticipation.
At that moment, Erin was briefly tense. Even though her mind was clouded, preventing rational thinking, she instinctively knew one thing: from now on, things wouldn’t go as she had planned.
But… As she gazed at Aiden, Erin confidently spoke up.
“What do you see me as?” Erin said, lifting one corner of her mouth coolly. She was just as eager as Aiden was.
Embracing Aiden’s head, Erin kissed him again. From that moment on, the two of them hardly spoke.
Instead, they focused on each other’s emotions and sensations. Originally, they needed time together to clear up the misunderstanding.
Throughout the night, Erin and Aiden were engrossed in each other, and as expected, the balance of power between them completely shifted.
They were so absorbed in each other that they didn’t even notice the dark night gradually giving way to dawn. Before they knew it, the dawn was breaking.
Erin blinked her tired eyes as she looked at the dim light outside the window. Her energy had reached its limit. But Aiden showed no sign of fatigue at all.
“Erin. Are you very tired?”
“…”
“You can lean on me if you’re tired.” It was clearly a thoughtful remark, but it strangely sounded alluring to her.
After giving him a resentful look, Erin embraced Aiden’s back with determination. Eventually, both of them fell asleep, and it was morning when the bright sunlight came in through the window.
Erin was fast asleep, as if she had fainted, and she might not wake up until noon.
But Aiden, unlike her, woke up after a short while, looking at the sleeping Erin’s face with a pensive expression.
Last night, Aiden’s heart had been calm and quiet, as if the intense beating from the night before had been a lie. Whenever he was with Erin, his heart would beat warmly and happily. But now it was a little different from usual.
It felt like layers of soil were piled up at the very bottom of his heart, where his anxious heart used to occasionally race, but now it was buried under the earth and couldn’t even leave a trace of its presence. The piled-up soil kept any further uneasiness from raising its head, instead exuding warmth.
The indescribable emotion wasn’t because Erin was feeling jealous. Her sincerity was conveyed through her gaze and gestures.
Touched by her unconditional trust and affection, Aiden found himself incredibly excited, experiencing a surge of overwhelming emotions. Once again, it was clear that Erin was the only person who had this much influence on Aiden.
Aiden kissed Erin’s lips and tenderly embraced her, closing his eyes.
***
A few days later, Aiden quietly sought out Julia.
“What, what is it? Why are you here?” Julia asked with a guarded stance as soon as she saw Aiden. Whenever Aiden visited her personally without any official reason, Julia always seemed to misunderstand something. Once again, she seemed worried about what she would hear.
“I heard from Erin.”
“Really?” Julia asked cautiously, still not completely dispelling her doubts.
“You don’t doubt it anymore, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Finally, I believe it.”
Julia let out a deep breath. “Is that why you came to tell me?”
“That, and… I came to apologize. In the future, please feel comfortable meeting Erin.”
Aiden said politely.
“Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s okay to meet too often. It would be better to meet briefly in the afternoon, if possible.”
“…….”
No matter how much the misunderstanding was cleared up, Aiden didn’t feel comfortable with Erin spending too much time with anyone other than himself.
“Wow, you’re really something,” Julia exclaimed, but at the same time, she gave him a displeased look.
Aiden understood the meaning of her gaze but calmly continued speaking.
“And just to move beyond the apology, I’ve come to make one suggestion.”
“A suggestion?”
“In the future, if there’s anything you need help with, anything at all, I will assist you once. If there’s anything else you want, I’m open to that as well.”
Aiden’s offer of assistance.
It didn’t simply mean providing help. It meant being able to handle any situation when Julia felt overwhelmed, whatever it may be.
“No. I’ll accept it. So you’ll help whenever I ask for anything?”
“Yes. Anything.”
Aiden nodded firmly.
“That should be reward enough.”
Julia accepted Aiden’s proposal with a wide smile.
